Metallic brace fob heels of boots and shoes



UNITED STATES PATENTV OFFICE. l

GEO. W. GRISWOLD, OF CARBONDALE, PENNSYLVANIA.

METALLIC BRACE FOR HEELS OF BOOTS .AND SHOES.

Specication of Letters Patent No. 15,762, dated September 23, 1856.

T0 all whom/t may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE W. GRrswoLD, of Carbondale, in the county of Luzerne and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Boots and Shoes, by which the counters and heels are braced or supported to prevent one from twisting or running over uponthe other;

and I do hereby declare t-he following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part thereof, in which- Figure 1 represents a side viewof a shoe, with the brace or support attached. Fig. 2 represents a view of the bottom of the shoe, and brace or support in place thereon. Fig. 3 represents, a perspective view of the brace or support detached from the shoe.

Similar letters where they occur in the several figures denote like parts.

The nature of my invention relates to t-he application to boots and shoes of all shapes and sizes, of a support or brace, which is so combined with the heel and counter, or the sole and upper, as that they shall not twist, or run over, the one upon the other.

To enable others skilled, in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe the same. with reference to the drawings.

My brace or support may be applied to boots or shoes, on the outside, after they are otherwise finished, or it may be inserted between the outside and the lining, while the boot or shoe is being made, and that portion of the brace or support which is conA nected to the heel may be covered with a leather or other tap, or may form the outside of the heel, in which latter case it will serve Vthe purpose of nails to prevent the heel from wearing away, and it may cover so much of the heel, and rise to such height on the counter, as may be found most desirable in the particular kind of boot or shoe to which it is to be applied.

The material out of which I 'propose to make the brace or support is malleable cast iron, black japanned, 4or varnished, similar to harness mountings, to give it the appearance of patent or glazed leather. But it may be made out of any other cast or sheet metal struck up into form by suitable dies. Or horn, bone, or other suitably stift' material may be used, as for instance, superheated or indurated india rubber.y

A, represents a shoe upon which the brace B, is arranged on the outside of the heel O, and counter D. The brace B, Fig. 3, is composed of a crescent shaped back, with its highest point rin rear of the shoe, and bent around to conform to the heel portion, or 'counter of said shoe, the points of the crescent tapering down on the sides of the counter, as shown in the drawings. That part of the brace which is united to the heel may be of a somewhat similarly shaped crescent form-open in the center' for the sake of lightness, or it maycover the entire face of the heel, and to make it still lighter, if desired, it may be made in skeleton, so as to have strength with lightness. The rear portion of the brace may be furnished with holes, to rivet or stitch it to the counter of the shoe, or the shoe may rest against it only without fastenings. The bottom part, however, of the brace should be furnished with holes 1,I 2, 3, 4, 5, &c., for tacking or otherwise fastening it lirmly to the heel. IVhen a tap (as before mentioned) is to be used on Athe heel, outside of the brace, the tacks may pass through said tap and brace into the under heel part, and thus firmly unite the whole. It may be desirable, sometimes, to extend the brace farther forward than shown, even so far as the shank part of the shoe or boot. But these changes will obviously suggest themselves `to the manufacturer, and would still embrace the principle herein set forth.

Having thus fully described the nature of my invention, and shown how the same may be applied to practical use, I would state that I am aware a metallic plate has been insertedin the heel and counter of an overshoe for the purpose of forming a bearing or nut, for a screw to pass through, to hold GEORGE W.` GRISWOLD.

Witnesses:

LEWIS PUGHE, P. C. GRITMAN. 

